{
  "abstract": "Using nitrous oxide as a probe, gas binding sites were looked for in the ligand binding domains of the three main subunits of the NMDA receptor, their affinity for nitrous oxide being assessed using state-of-the-art free energy calculations. For six of them, nitrous oxide is found to have an affinity that is better than for the well-studied gas binding sites of urate oxidase.\n\nInterestingly, two of these sites were previously found in the ligand binding domain of the GluN1 subunit, when xenon was used as a probe. However, the best binding sites for nitrous oxide are found in the GluN2B subunit, in a pair of large hydrophobic pockets. Intriguingly, the sidechain of Cys461, whose mutation is associated to intellectual disability and epilepsy, protrudes into one of them, which is next to the binding site of the glutamate agonist, suggesting that this pocket may play a role in the normal function of the NMDA receptor.\n\nSince nitrous oxide similarly affects GluN2A and GluN2B containing NMDA receptors, it is likely that nitrous oxide can also bind to domains other than the ligand binding ones, for instance near the cation pore where other dissociative anesthetics, like ketamine or memantine, are known to bind.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 2,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "David Allouche"
    },
    {
      "name": "Yves-Henri Sanejouand"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b2012mn9h3b3t.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": null,
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "b2012mn9h3b3t",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://hal.science/hal-05858221v1",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-ND-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-ND 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "hal",
      "0.sdv"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": "https://hal.science/hal-05858221/document",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-02",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b2012mn9h3b3t.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-10T12:20:54Z",
      "native_id": "hal-05858221",
      "source": "hal",
      "url": "https://hal.science/hal-05858221v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "hal:0.sdv",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Several gas binding sites in the ligand binding domains of the N-methyl D-aspartate receptor",
  "title_text": "Several gas binding sites in the ligand binding domains of the N-methyl D-aspartate receptor",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-10T12:20:54Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b2012mn9h3b3t",
  "venue": "HAL",
  "versions": []
}